Category: Kitchen Tips

“Dry” and “poaching” might sound like an oxymoron, but hear us out! This is a great technique to use with small cuts that don’t have a lot of internal fat to keep them moist. Here’s how…

Also called oven poaching, dry poaching is like a cross between braising and roasting. We mostly use it for cooking boneless skinless chicken breast, but it also works well with fish, thin cuts of pork, or any meat that has a tendency to overcook.

Butter a baking dish that will comfortably hold all the meat without crowding them too closely together. Cut a sheet of parchment paper a little larger than the pan and rub butter over one side. Preheat the oven to 400°.

Prepare the meat as you normally would for roasting, grilling, or stove-top cooking – that is, rub it with butter or olive oil, and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and seasonings. Place the meat in the pan with the pieces spaced an inch or so apart. Tuck the parchment paper, butter-side down, around the meat.

Bake the meat until it’s cooked through. This will vary depending on the type and thickness of the meat you’re cooking. For chicken breasts, we find that it usually takes 35-40 minutes.

The parchment paper traps in moisture, gently steaming the chicken in butter and its own juices. The resulting chicken is always tender, moist, and flavored through with the spices we used to coat the outside. It even picks up a little color from the butter and the contact with the hot baking dish.

Instructions

Brine the pork chops (optional): If you have time, brining the pork for even a brief period adds flavor and ensures juiciness in the finished chop. Bring 1 cup of the water to a boil, add the salt and optional flavorings, and stir to dissolve the salt. Add 2 more cups of cold water to bring the temperature of the brine down to room temperature. Place the pork chops in a shallow dish and pour the brine over top. The brine should cover the chops — if not, add additional water and salt (1 cup water to 1 tablespoon salt) until the chops are submerged. Cover the dish and refrigerate for 30 minutes or up to 4 hours.

Heat the oven and skillet: Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 400°F. Place the skillet in the oven to preheat as well.

Season the pork chops: While the oven heats, prepare the pork chops. Remove the chops from the brine; if you didn’t brine, remove the chops from their packaging. Pat dry with paper towels. Rub both sides with olive oil, then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Set the chops aside to warm while the oven finishes heating.

Remove the skillet from the oven: Using oven mitts, carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven and set it over medium-high heat on the stovetop. Turn on a vent fan or open a window.

Sear the pork chops: Lay the pork chops in the hot skillet. You should hear them immediately begin to sizzle. Sear until the undersides of the chops are seared golden, 3 minutes. The chops may start to smoke a little — that’s ok. Turn down the heat if it becomes excessive.

Flip the chops and transfer to the oven: Use tongs to flip the pork chops to the other side. Immediately transfer the skillet to the oven using oven mitts.

Roast the chops until cooked through: Roast until the pork chops are cooked through and register 140°F to 145°F in the thickest part of the meat with an instant-read thermometer. Cooking time will be 6 to 10 minutes depending on the thickness of the chops, how cool they were at the start of cooking, and whether they were brined. Start checking the chops at 6 minutes and continue checking every minute or two until the chops are cooked through.

Rest the chops: Transfer the cooked pork chops to a plate and pour any pan juices over the top (or reserve for making a pan sauce or gravy). Tent loosely with foil and let the chops rest for at least 5 minutes before serving.